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Jason fucked up.
"You're not getting out of that," Batman said. "Trust me, we've taken precautions."
Jason yanked against the restraints, gnashing his teeth beneath his helmet. He was strapped tightly against a chair, bound so well that he was not able to even twitch his fingers. He couldn't reach any of his weapons, let alone make any attempt to try and free himself.
He felt incredibly stupid. How exactly did he manage to get himself captured? He had done absolutely everything right and always had plenty of back up plans.
So why the fuck was Jason tied to a chair in the middle of the Bat Cave, the last place on Earth he would ever want to be? Everything happened so quickly and his capture felt fuzzy. He squinted. He had been in Park Row, making his rounds. Batman and Robin had the audacity to enter his territory…and then… and then what?
He wasn't sure. Anything that happened after he first laid sight on the pair of heroes was just nothing but hazy green fog. Trying to focus on the memories more clearly just made his head hurt.
For a long moment, he did not speak, mouth twisting into a thin, flat line. "What the fuck do you want?" Jason asked at last, his voice coming out as a growl through his voice modulator. He thought he could hear the exhaustion even through the effects.
Batman did not answer Jason's question. Or, maybe be did, because his mouth moved but Jason's mind was so filled with emotion that the sounds were too difficult to discern.
Jason sucked in a low, ragged breath. He had planned for many emergencies. He had not planned for a moment where his hands would be restrained well enough that he would not be able to press the detanantor. His helmet, rigged with explosives, was absolutely useless without that ability. He wondered, again, what the hell happened when he was captured. Why had he not pressed it then? Everything was so blank and fuzzy at the edges.
What the fuck happened?
What the fuck was wrong with him?
He squeezed his eyes shut.
When Jason opened his eyes again, the cave around him was so vibrantly, neon green that it made him feel nauseous. He couldn't even really see the computer across the room anymore, the haze of green was so deeply intense. His breathing was heavy and he pressed at his restraints again. They dug into his skin, pressing harshly even through the thick fabric of his clothing.
Jason tried to steady himself, succeeding in doing so just in time to see Batman lift his gaze, looking up at the rafters Jason knew were above his head. Jason strained to peer up there, but the constraints made it too difficult and he was not able to crane his head back.
"Robin!" Batman called, "I know you're there! I told you to leave the Cave!"
Jason resisted the urge to flinch at the sound of Robin's name, gritting his teeth as hard as he could. He stared across the room, eyes trained on the Bat Computer, the sight of it tinged ever so slightly green. The inside of his helmet felt uncomfortablely warm, and he was struck by the sudden desire to rip his helmet off.
There was a shuffling noise.
"But I can help!" Robin's voice was small and insistent.
"Get out of here," Batman demanded. "I do not want you near Red Hood."
"Why not?" Robin whined.
"Now, Robin," Batman demanded, with a harshness to his tone.
There was a loud sigh and a rustling noise, presumably as Robin wandered away, out of the cave. The was a dragging sound, a door being opened, and then—
Woof, woof, woof.
"No!" Robin cried, "Bat Hound, you're not supposed to go in there—!"
Bat Hound?
Jason's head wobbled.
He could see Batman in the corner of his vision. It looked like the man was speaking, but yet again, Jason was not able to hear any of it. His mouth was opening and closing but all Jason heard was a high-pitched ringing in the back of his ears. It kept doing that, going in and out and in and out.
Then, over the din, be heard a low woof.
Jason's eyes snapped downward.
Bat Hound was sitting on the floor at his feet. He was looking up at Jason with wide brown eyes, panting. For a moment, Jason wondered if it was the same dog he played with as a child. The creature would have been nine or ten years old by now, old enough that hero work probably was not as viable. He hadn't seen the mutt trailing after Batman and Robin on patrol, either.
But here he was, in the Bat Cave. He wasn't supposed to be there, Jason thought.
Because yes, once Jason calmed his nerves enough and pushed the green away from his vision the best he could, he was able to focus more clearly on the animal and couldn't stop thinking about how it was him.
He was much older than the last time Jason had seen him, but it was definitely still the same dog. He cringed internally.
He remembered running alongside the dog on patrol, many, many years ago. Those memories were oddly clear in his mind, sharp in comparison to so many of his others.
He wondered if Batman suspected that his helmet was rigged to hell and back with explosives. Probably not. If he knew, he definitely would not have taken Jason all the way back to the Cave. That would have been endlessly reckless. Jason had done his absolute best to hide this knowledge from Batman… and yet it seemed like Bat Hound was about to give him up anyway.
The dog was trained on how to sniff out explosives and there was no fucking way Jason would manage to sneak by him, even with Bat Hound being so old by now. Even when it was clear Bat Hound was not supposed to be in the Cave. Even when he hadn't been ordered to sniff out any explosives, the dog always too determined for any of that to cause any issues anyway.
Jason knew that it was futile, but he started pressing against his restraints even harder. He felt rabid, swaying back and forth and grunting out low, angry noises. His breathing was heavy and strained. Everything was still so green. Bat Hound was fuzzy and crinkled at the edges, blurry and unfocused.
Jason didn't plan for this. He didn't fucking plan for this and he didn't know what to do. He internally pleaded for someone to grab the dog and drag him out of the Cave.
Jason didn't know why he felt so panicked. He was captured. He was already captured. They were going to unmask him and find out his identity anyway, and they would end up finding the explosives anyway.
Maybe he was just hoping he'd get the chance to denonate his helmet before any of that could happen.
He waited for Bat Hound to alert Batman of the explosives. He was trained to so whenever he detected their scent, with a distinctive pawing motion. Batman would know what that meant.
But… Bat Hound didn't alert for a long moment. He was just staring at Jason, sniffing at the air. His head cocked to one side in curiosity. Only then did he alert for explosives, snuffling at the air and batting at Jason's ankles.
Suddenly, the dog was leaning into him, paws against his lower legs. There was a nose nuzzling into Jason's thigh, and the dog starting barking, low and worried: woof, woof, woof.
Jason's breathing picked up.
Nothing was going to plan.
Nothing was going to plan, and Jason was absolutely fucked. He could feel his heart beat gain speed, thrumming rapidly beneath his skin, faster and faster with every second that passed.
Bat Hound was lapping at Jason's leg, tongue warm and wet. He was being nuzzled, softly, the yips and barks growing slowly more and more excited.
Bark, bark, bark, the dog was saying. He sounded… happy. So incredibly happy.
Jason panted, feeling more like a dog than the one right in front of him. He felt dizzy.
He was not entirely sure what happened next. Everything happened so quickly that it felt impossible to keep track.
But, the next thing he knew, his helmet was gone, and there was a hand on the back of his head, cradling the curls there. Jason flinched against the contact, but the hand didn't pull away. A second hand came up to touch his face, a gentle palm against his chin. Jason didn't open his eyes. In fact, he squeezed them shut tighter.
At some point, he felt himself being lowered onto the floor.
There was a heavy weight in his lap, warm and reassuring. It grounded him. A tiny nose pressed into his stomach. His hands were buried in soft fur. Bat Hound was in his lap. He had done that a lot, when Jason was small… calming him, whenever he panicked.
That hand was still on the back of his head. Someone was sitting next to him, shoulder to shoulder, holding him softly while he gripped Bat Hound's fur. They were speaking, words soft and low and gentle.
"It's okay," the words said, "I promise that it's okay."
Jason's brain stuttered. Batman?
"It's okay," the words repeated.
But no, it wasn't Batman. The voice wasn't forced deep enough. It wasn't gravely enough. It wasn't just right.
It wasn't Batman. It was Bruce.
"It's okay," Bruce kept repeating. "Jason? Jason? It's alright, I promise. Goddamn, I'm not mad. I'm not. It's okay."
Bruce never swore. Never. Even something as simple as goddamn felt out of place on his tongue.
Goddamn, I'm not mad.
Even the assurances were strange. Bruce… Bruce was not vocal about feelings. He was awkward and bumbling.
Jason knew he should fight back. He knew that. He had… he had plans. He had contingencies. He was untied—and when had that happened? His arms were free.
He could fight back. He should fight back.
Instead, Jason pressed into the body at his side, not opening his eyes. He couldn't bring himself to move. He should. He knew he should… but he didn't want to. He felt tired and exhausted and dizzy.
This hug meant nothing. Bruce didn't care about him. He cared about the little Robin he lost, years ago. Jason wasn't that Robin anymore.
Yet.
It's okay, Bruce had said.
Jason didn't have the energy to say anything in return. The hand kept stroking his hair. The whispers kept coming, gentle and kind. Bat Hound… Ace, his name was Ace… was still in Jason's lap.
And maybe Jason could believe for a moment that Bruce was right.